"Pillars of the Void…" Those were words that the Ever Spring Mistress would have never thought that she would hear again.
For they weren't just mere words, but a title. A Title that only one being held. A being that not many knew of, but those that knew, both feared and respected it. It was a being, that the mere mention of it was enough to change the cheerful demeanor of the Ever Spring Mistress.
"How can… someone like that be the backing of someone… are you sure?" The Ever Spring Mistress asked, looking at the Saintess.
"Indeed… I personally 'talked' to him." The Saintess said, making the Ever Spring Mistress gasp.
"Y-you… talked to him?!" The Ever Spring Mistress covered her mouth with her hands.
"Indeed." The Saintess nodded. "It is also why I am still here." She added. "Did the… Great being ask something of you?" The Ever Spring Mistress questioned.
"Something like that." The Saintess replied in short.
The Ever Spring Mistress understood that it was probably something that was not to be heard by others, and as such kept her lips sealed. As she didn't ask any further questions, the Saintess let out a breath of relief.
"Well, things aren't that bad." The Saintess said after a minute. "Or rather, I can say it is mostly positive." ~huu~
"I guess that's good." The Ever Spring Mistress said, feeling relieved.
Her expression also lightened up, and the cheerfulness returned to her face.
"So who's this person being backed by the Great being?" The Ever Spring Mistress finally asked. "You've seen him already, I'm sure." The Saintess replied.
"I've seen him?" The Ever Spring Mistress raised her brows. "Was it someone among the people earlier?" she wondered.
"You won't have to guess long, he's here." The Saintess said, having sensed the arrival of someone outside.
"Oh?" The Ever Spring Mistress turned to look at the gate and saw it open.
~step~step~step~
From it walked, none other than Lin Mu along with a bird that was sitting on his shoulder.
The Ever Spring Mistress laid her eyes on him, and instantly found him different.
Her eyes shimmered lightly, and peered through Lin Mu.
"Second Tribulation Stage of the Immortal realm with his Qi and equivalent to the Fourth Tribulation Stage of the Immortal realm with his body… and he's barely lived twenty nine springs…" She said in a low voice, only audible to her and the Saintess. "Is this what it takes to have the Great being back you?" she wondered.
"No… this is barely scratching the surface." The Saintess said. "He's more than meets the eye. Take your time to observe him." She added.
The Ever Spring Mistress's expression turned serious for a moment before turning to a rather cheerful and youthful one. "Hello there! Who do we have here?" The Ever Spring Mistress asked in a young voice. It felt even younger than her teen voice, as if she were a child.
Lin Mu noticed the clear difference, but didn't question it. "Greetings, Celestial Ever Spring Mistress." He said with cupped hands.
"Just the Ever Spring Mistress will be fine." The cheerful woman said, raising a corner of her lips.
She then walked closer to Lin Mu, and did a circle around him, her eyes scanning every inch of him. Her nose even twitched as she smelled him while also hearing his heart with her ears.
Lin Mu definitely found it strange, but didn't feel any immortal sense probing him thus didn't react.
'What's she doing?' Lin Mu wondered at this rather 'mortal' way of gauging a person.
After a few seconds of that, the Ever Spring Mistress stopped and walked next to the Saintess.
"With all that he has… He's surprisingly 'pure'." The Ever Spring Mistress whispered. The Saintess's lips twitched, as she spoke in a slightly irritated voice. "You know that's not what I asked of you." "But isn't this more shocking? Someone of his standing should have girls drowning him." The Ever Spring Mistress said with a hint of disbelief. "Even if it's not the girls themselves, clans and other powers would be throwing their girls at him too."
"He's dedicated to his cultivation." The Saintess simply stated. "If you say so." The Ever Spring Mistress curled her lips for a moment before calming down. "But there are something's I cannot see through. He has… Several conflicting things contained within him." She said, making the Saintess look at her.
The Saintess then lightly waved her finger, creating an air barrier around them that prevented anyone outside from hearing what was happening. Lin Mu didn't even notice it and simply thought the two women were still observing him.
To him, Celestials were unfamiliar existences and he didn't know what kind of behavior they would show. The Saintess was mostly calm and collected, but the Ever Spring Mistress was quite different from that.
'I guess there are many variances among them too.' Lin Mu thought to himself, unaware that the two were having a serious conversation.
"What did you learn?" The Saintess asked openly this time as no one could hear her other than the Ever Spring Mistress.
In response, the Ever Spring Mistress's expression turned blank and an eerie look appeared in her eyes. In that moment, it looked like it was no longer her, but an entirely different presence within her body.
"The Spring speaks of things that exceed its existence. The man is an enigma and bears no karma of his own, nor his soul. The Spring sees no past springs within his soul and neither do they see them entering the winter. And yet… The Spring warns of an existence that would bring a bitter winter." The Ever Spring Mistress stated in a cold voice before her demeanor returned to normal.
Since the Ever Spring Mistress was facing the Saintess and had her back to Lin Mu, he didn't witness all this. As such, he found nothing strange about him.
Hearing the Ever Spring Mistress's cryptic words though, the Saintess felt a million thoughts going through her mind while her heart raced in anxiety.
